Gender and Sexual Orientation

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Transcript of Gender and Sexual Orientation

TED Talk: "Love, No Matter What"Weitzman's Process of Learning Gender Roles- Step 1: The child learns to distinguish men and women and boys and girls and the associated behaviors of each group

- Step 2: The child learns to act on gender role preferences for his or her own gender in an appropriate manner

- Step 3: Child learns to behave according to the standard gender roles of his or her own gender - This is about a case study done on a gay student, "Pete", about his coming out experience in his small town high school.- The study was conducted by Nicholas J. Pace who was the principal of Pete's high school. He wrote this article.- Pace interviewed 10 people that knew Pete at the time that he came out during his senior year.- Pace discusses Pete's decision to bring a boy to prom and how the administration, faculty, and fellow students responded to it.

Classroom Application- As future educators, how can we better know students in order to handle coming out situations and other gender-related issues well?- Find a good balance between knowing the student academically and personally.- How can we treat all students equally?- This is a difficult thing to do, but it is crucial to a successful, cohesive teaching environment. Remain objective yet sensitive to individual cases.- What is the key to all of this?- Having a fair and aware classroom. - Leave matters of sexuality unaddressed unless it pertains to the material.- Integrate the idea of embracing differences into the classroom rules and routine.- Encourage students to take interest in those different from them, both inside and outside of the classroom. - Example: Pair up and find similarities and differencesPresentation by Suntrell Butler, Rebecca Clark, and Samantha KennellGender and Sexual Orientation (Chapter 10)The "Dominant Culture" in Schools- The book discusses the fact that schools focus on the "dominant culture" of white, middle class individuals in schools.- They enforce the gender roles associated with this culture, ignoring the individual differences of the students related to their gender and sexuality. - This is a big source of the lack of understanding that occurs between students. Pair ActivityDiscuss with a partner what you think the administration decided to do in this situation and why. Results and Conclusions- The administration chose to allow Pete to bring the boy to prom, and the reactions were mostly positive.

- Most of the students interviewed said they had known Pete for so long that it didn't change their opinions of him. They also said that students probably would have reacted more violently had Pete acted more "flamboyant".

- Pete's physics class was a support system for him and probably a huge reason why he felt comfortable enough to come out.

- Pace concluded that faculty and the administration need to know students better on a personal level so that they can give them the smoothest, most enjoyable and successful educational journey possible. He also concluded that administrators need to keep their personal beliefs and biases separate from their jobs in order to have good student-staff relations.

- My reaction...Gender RolesGender Socialization- You start to form your self-identity at 7-8 months years of age.- Gender is a significant part of your self-identity.- Gender identification is a process that begins at 1.5 years of age and is internalized by 3 years of age.- Your gender identity is derived from "rules and expectations" that your culture has for your gender that touch on clothing, behavior, speech and "place in society" (pg. 340)- "Gender role identity...limits us in terms of our range of choices and, sometimes, the very quality of our lives." (pg. 340)- What do you think is meant by this? Do you agree?This is a TED Talk by Andrew Solomon, a gay man, about his experiences with stereotyping and cultural nuances.Gender Equality in SchoolsTitle IXTitle IX of the Education Amendments of 1972: This intended to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in elementary and secondary schools.

"...No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal finance assistance..."

It wasn't until 1980 that the US Department of Education was founded to oversee and enforce Title IX.Inspired by the civil rights movement during the 1960s and 1970s, members of the women's movement began to pressure Congress to enact legislation that would guarantee equal education opportunities for females.

Gender role stereotyping impressed upon society that women were not meant to be educated nor were they encouraged to join the work force.Grove City vs. Bell - 1984Civil Rights Restoration Act - 1988This act overrode the decision of Grove City vs. Bell that all educational institutions that receive any federal assistance, directly or indirectly, are bound by Title IX legislation.Grove City College in Pennsylvania tried evading compliance with Title IX because the college did not take money from the federal government to aid in its athletic programs.

In 1984, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Grove City College and removed the applicability of Title IX in athletic programs by declaring that only programs that receive direct federal assistance can be held accountable to Title IX.Athletics Disclosure Act - 1994This requires coeducational institutions of higher education to disclose information regarding its intercollegiate athletics programs on an annual basis.Perspectives on Gender SexualityGLSENThe culture of schools is overwhelmingly heterosexual. State laws have an impact on school environments and school safety, and this notion is represented by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN 2005).

This was the first systematic measurement and analysis of statewide policy. It found that 42 states do not meet minimum criteria for protecting all students, particularly gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender students.In 1998, a homosexual student named Matthew Shepard was murdered because of his sexual orientation. After this, professional educators began to consider a need to address the issue of homosexuality and schools. Their studies suggested that the more students know about homosexuality, the less likely they are to be homophobic. Innate vs. Adapted Sexuality"I Was Born This Way": Is Sexuality Innate and Should It Matter?http://isites.harvard.edu/icb/icb.do?keyword=k78405&pageid=icb.page414413

- This is a peer reviewed journal article published by Harvard.

Time for another group activity!

Scientists have developed two theories about the development of homosexual tendencies.1. Innate -

Homosexuality is found in your genes (not proven), and you have no choice.2. Adapted - Homosexuality is a learned behavior that you can turn on and off.Gender Stereotypes in School"Gender role stereotypes are the basis for genderized traits, traits that any person may be able to display but that are assigned value when displayed by people of the appropriate sex." (pg. 346)Definitions of masculinity and femininity force society to believe in roles that a male/female should ascribe to and what types of activities people should and should not participate in. The underlying belief in sex-role stereotypes results in sex bias.Social factors that enforce male and female stereotypes result in sex bias."Gender role stereotypes limit growth and development, create social and institutional barriers, and contribute to the organization of schooling." (pg. 346)"Safe Zone" Program 1. Make no assumption about sexuality.2. Have something gay-related visible in your office.3. Support, normalize, and validate a person's feelings about his or her sexuality.4. Do not advise students to come out to parents, family, and friends as they need to come out at their own safe pace. 5. Guarantee confidentiality with students.6. Challenge homophobia.7. Combat heterosexism in your classroom.8. Learn about and refer to community organizations.9. Encourage school administrators to adopt and enforce anti-discrimination. 10. Provide role models.

Arizona's Anti-Gay BillThe legislators in Arizona proposed and passed a bill that would allow businesses to deny their services to gay or lesbians customers if their sexual orientation went against the business owners' religious beliefs. Supporters feel as though business owners have a right to religious freedom, even if it includes discrimination based on sexual orientation. Many who oppose this bill expressed that it would only provide a framework for discrimination on other levels such as race, familial status, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability.

"I think anybody that owns a business can choose who they work with or who they don't work with, but I don't know that it needs to be statutory. In my life and in my businesses, if I don't want to do business or if I don't want to deal with a particular company or person or whatever, I'm not interested. That's America. That's freedom.”-Gov. Jan Brewer"Gay, Rural, and Coming Out: A Case Study of One School's Experience" by Nicholas J. Pace1. (pg. 352)http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/21/us/arizona-anti-gay-bill/Guess Who?For each picture try to figure out which gender it would fall under. 2. 3.4.5.6.ResourcesCushner, K., McClelland, A., & Safford, P. (2012). Human diversity in education: An intercultural approach (7th ed., Florida ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Osmundson, Joseph. ""I Was Born This Way": Is Sexuality Innate, and Should It Matter? § LGBTQ Policy Journal at the Harvard Kennedy School." LGBTQ Policy Journal (2011): n. pag. "I Was Born This Way": Is Sexuality Innate, and Should It Matter? § LGBTQ Policy Journal at the Harvard Kennedy School. Harvard Kennedy School.